


Improve

by kikibug13



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Friends to Lovers, M/M, regis grew up while clarus wasn't looking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-27
Updated: 2019-07-27
Packaged: 2020-07-23 06:35:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20003905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kikibug13/pseuds/kikibug13
Summary: While Clarus was assigned to training mostly away from Insomnia, Regis has been pushing people away from himself - hurting them, but also hurting himself in the process. Now it's for Clarus to figure out why. And to fix it.





	Improve

**Author's Note:**

  * For [VenatorNoctis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/VenatorNoctis/gifts).



Clarus had been aware that something was not right when it came to Regis for close to three years, now, but his own intensive training had kept him away from Insomnia over and over again. And when he had been home, Regis had been...

Distant. With good enough excuses to not allow Clarus to question him. _Tired_ enough that Clarus allowed him. He allowed it when people started dropping away from the Prince's immediate proximity. He was too bloody _far_ to do anything about whatever fallout Regis and Aulea had, when they were about sixteen. He did get to visit her, after he came back. She had been hurt, he could tell, but her eyes still held gentleness towards the Prince who had sent her away. She was planning on entering the Crownsguard when she turned eighteen, and fighting her way back to Regis's side. Clarus offered to help and she rolled her eyes. No. She wanted to only get there if she was the best. If there _wasn't_ a way for her to get sent away again. 

They kept in touch, as much as his training allowed. She was good people, and whatever idiocy Regis had concocted - and Regis himself refused to speak about it, in the month or so Clarus had in Insomnia - her loyalties were in the right place. So was her heart, but - well. When she made her way back to Regis's side, then those things might get somewhere. If Regis was allowed. 

A Prince couldn't always follow his heart, after all. Not for the commitments that were for life.

Clarus was now twenty-three, and Regis eighteen. And Clarus was finally coming home for good. 

The night before he was returning to his duties of training as well as guarding the heir to the Throne of Lucis, Weskham cornered him, his dark eyes tense with concern. 

"Clarus."

"Wesk. What's up."

At least the old greeting got the chamberlain to relax a notch. 

"I .. should warn you. About Regis."

Well. _That_ got Clarus himself to tense up a notch. "He still pushing everyone away?" 

"Yes. I am afraid so. And it is... He is not doing well, Clarus. He is fulfilling his duties, his training has progressed, as far as I have been able to determine, at a good pace, his work to take on some of the load from King Mors's shoulders is proceeding wonderfully. But he is... he is not all right."

"Right." Clarus reached up to squeeze his friend's shoulder, his eyes clouded with understanding. He hadn't been here, and Weskham was the other person that Regis hadn't been able to send away. Even with the Prince taking up a lot of responsibility and demonstrating that he needed fewer attendants to keep him on track, there were people he could not be rid of so easily. So Weskham had been carrying the burden of whatever was going on. 

Well. "I'll see if I can at least find out what brought this all on. You haven't, I'm guessing?" 

Weskham shook his head. "Every time I attempt that, he turns the conversation onto work that needs to be done. And there is only so much I can do to avoid that. He's..."

"Stubborn. Yeah, I've noticed." Clarus's mouth twitched up. "I'll see what I can do. It'll either work or you'll have a pretty exhausted and sore Prince for a couple of days, so make plans for that, after our first extended training session." Because Weskham would know Regis's schedule. He'd be able to handle it.

Wesk snorted. "I do hope it works." Then, more seriously. "You're the oldest friend he has left, Clarus. Even if it doesn't work..."

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Thank you, Clarus."

Not the kind of stuff to fill a guy with anxiety over his first full day on the job or _anything_. Though Clarus made sure to fill up his hours until their first workout with enough so he wouldn't have much of a chance to worry. He was Regis's Shield. That wasn't all physical, and if Regis was taking up some of the governmental work from his Father, it'd be good, even with Weskham there, if he had enough awareness of the current situation to be able to follow a conversation.

And then. Then he and Regis were alone in the training room. Regis's motions were like those of a large feline, and Clarus could tell exactly who he had been training with most, just from the stance he took, and the way he moved. Well, this was going to be interesting. 

"Clarus."

"Reg." He smirked. "What, no 'Clar'? Or 'Clarbear'?" He could see Regis stiffen, and oh, yes, the Prince _had_ been planning to push him away, tough luck. "You that worried about how you'll perform?"

"I have not neglected my training."

"Is that so?" Clarus smirked. "Show me."

And so they began. Neither Regis nor Weskham had been wrong - Regis had not been slacking. He had also almost come into his full height and strength, which were not negligible. But even so, even with his magic, Regis could not actually keep up with Clarus Amicitia who was fighting with the full and focused intent of exhausting his Prince. It took a long while. Two hours, two and a half, maybe. But, eventually, Regis lost his footing, and Clarus caught him before he fell on the ground. 

"You _asshole_!"

Clarus snorted through his own heavy breathing, blowing a heavy strand of sweaty hair away from his eyes. "Oh, here's the Reg I know and love. Hey."

"Let me down."

"Hah, no. Not while your limbs are shaking."

"I'm fine."

"Try that again. What was the last time anyone so much as bruised you in training?" 

"I'm fine, Clarus. Honest."

Clarus hesitated, because this was closer to how the reassurance _should_ sound, but... if he'd managed to isolate himself, Regis must have gotten really, really good at making people think he was fine when he really wasn't. 

"Garula shit."

"Hey!" 

That, unfortunately, only got Regis a glare.

Except. Not what Clarus expected, that got Regis to fold. The green eyes dulled, and he kind of deflated in his arms, and Clarus could feel the hairs on the back of his arms standing up in alarm. This was... this was worse than he'd expected.

"Reg?" 

The Prince remained silent for a while, lips pursed stubbornly, and Clarus brought them both down to sit on the floor, arms still wrapped around the younger man. He was just about to ask again, when the form against his shook... with a sob.

"I've missed you so much, Clar..." It was whispered, barely that, even. Then Regis's head rolled until he buried his face against Clarus's chest. "I've missed you so much."

"Reg..." Clarus swallowed, then he shifted a hand until he was stroking Regis's hair. "I'm here. I'm right here, Reg. I ain't going anywhere." 

"You should."

"What?" 

"You _should_. I've tried, you know. I've tried to make it so you will stay away for training. Tried to make it so you won't have to come back."

" _Reg_." Clarus was aware of the danger in his own voice, but this was... _Astrals._

"Why come back? Why dedicate your life, only to watch me wither before your eyes? KNowing that the worst threat to my life, you can't guard me against, no matter what?" 

Clarus. Blinked. "Wh--" No. Dumb question. "Is _that_ what's-- _Regis Lucis Caelum_ , for fuck's sake." 

"L-language." Clarus would have laughed, except this was full-on sobbed against his chest, and it was breaking his astrals-damned _heart_ to be here for it. Three years. Three years, his closest friend, the kid he'd been there to see growing up. Three years, he'd been dealing with this, alone. Making sure that he was alone. 

Making sure that when the inevitable came - and Clarus understood well enough just how inevitable it was - as few people as possible would suffer. What _had_ happened three years ago, to trigger that? Clarus would need to check, but now that he thought about it, he remembered the paleness in his mother's face as she looked past Clarus to the approaching figure of King Mors, his alternate steps emphasized by the brand-new clicking of a cane against the tiles of the floor. 

Oh. 

So Regis had figured it out. That he would be that man, in too short a time. That he would make those close to him upset, worried, helpless. And he had made sure that there would be so, so very few to bear the brunt of it, instead burying himself into training and work. Trying to erase who and what he was for the sake of what he had to become. 

"Reg." Clarus's voice broke, and he pressed his lips against the top of Regis's head. "Reg, oh, Reg." Because Regis. Reggie. Regis Lucis Caelum. He was not the kind of man who took well to being alone. He was social, sociable, friendly. He had a horrible sense of humor, but he was gentle and sweet and one single smile could fill him up with energy for days.

And he had had nobody who'd smiled at him, other than his fading father and ailing mother. For _years_. 

"Reg. Reggie. It's all right, I'm here now. I know what'll come, and I'll still be here with you. It's all righ--" 

A pair of soft lips pressed against his, certain but also questioning, and Clarus's brain shorted out for the second time in the span of only a few minutes. He hesitated, his brain skipping over all the reasons why he should stop this. In the end, they could not outweigh Regis's silent request. He - they should talk about this. They _were_ going to talk about this. But, for the moment, Clarus relaxed and kissed back. Maybe he never had permitted to himself to think about this, despite all the... historical evidence of dalliance. Maybe he never had permitted himself to consider that he would be wanted this way, himself. Maybe.

But, right now, his heart was overflowing with love for his Prince, and all of that love poured out in his kiss.

Later, and he couldn't tell when Regis had shifted to sitting in his lap, but it didn't matter, as they were both panting, he murmured, "you know the next thing that's happening to you is an actual massage, not the naughty kind, right?" 

Regis hiccupped. And then threw his head back, and laughed. It sounded a little rough, as though unused in a while, but he shook with it as he had shaken with sobs, earlier.

"I," his voice still warbled, "expect nothing less of my Shield. But you'll _have_ to show me the naughty kind, too, one of these days, you know that, right?" 

Clarus did his best to sound dubious. "We'll see."

But even as he tried, he knew resistance was futile. For good or ill, this precious young man was in his heart, and he was going to stay there forever. He knew that he was going to hurt because of it. Hurt when Regis would belong to another. Hurt when Regis's life got leeched away, hour by hour rather than month by month. Hurt when he took risks that Clarus could not shoulder for him, or even with him.

Yet, if he could bring back the laughter to these green eyes, bring back the _light_ , even for a day... 

It would be worth it.

Here he was, and here he was going to stay.


End file.
